


two dads make a right

by straythoughts (HiraethSatisfied)



Series: Yours + Mine = Ours [5]
Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Attempted Flirting, Domestic Fluff, Flirting, Gen, M/M, Mother's Day, Sharing a Bed, Single Parent Bang Chan, Single Parent Lee Minho | Lee Know, Sleepy Boys, Song: Versace On The Floor (Bruno Mars), Tea Parties, and talk about parents, changbin and wooyoung are best friends, seongjoong parents, song association, the kids try to set them up, the rest of ateez is there briefly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-26
Updated: 2021-02-26
Packaged: 2021-03-17 05:40:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29712465
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/HiraethSatisfied/pseuds/straythoughts
Summary: Changbin is forced to make a Mother's Day card.Seungmin sees his dad flirting with Minho in the kitchen.And of course, Chan and Minho are in a glass closet.
Relationships: Bang Chan/Lee Minho | Lee Know
Series: Yours + Mine = Ours [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2119446
Comments: 20
Kudos: 112





	two dads make a right

**Author's Note:**

> Hello losers (affectionate), I'm Back. This will be in order at some point, I swear. As always, stan Ryn and enjoy.

Changbin sits with his backpack in his lap, next to his friend. He doesn’t know why, but his tummy hurts. 

Maybe it has something to do with the piece of paper he has sitting in his bag. His teacher had made him do it, but it feels weird. Today is a weird day every year, because he’s never had a mom. 

A little further down the drive through zone in front of the school, he can see a boy from their class leave the group of kids he’d been talking to and run up to his mother as she calls for him. She crouches down so she can give him a big hug, and they’re both smiling. Changbin wants to smile like that, too. He can, with Minho, but he wonders if it would be different with a mother.

Next to him, Wooyoung is kicking his feet against the bench. “Sannie’s late again,” he complains. “I wanted to play tetherball with him and Mingi and Yunho before we have to leave.” 

“Didn’t he say you don’t have those sparkly markers at home?” Changbin asks. “Maybe he wants to keep using them until you go.” 

“Maybe,” Wooyoung sighs. “Did you finish your card?” 

Changbin turns to look at him. Wooyoung is a good friend. He has two dads, like Changbin did for a little while. Maybe he would understand. 

“I don’t have a mom,” he says. “And you don’t have a mom. But you have two dads, right? Do you wish you had a mom?” 

Wooyoung frowns a little. “No,” he says thoughtfully. He sounds sure.

“How do you know?” 

Shrugging, his friend stops kicking his legs. “Joong dad and Hwa dad do a lot of things together. Like Joong dad is really bad at cooking, so Hwa dad makes sure they both do it. But Joong dad will take us to the store, or start laundry or help us paint our nails. So Hwa dad will join him to do those things too. And they both give us hugs and clothes and toys. So I _think_ they do all the stuff moms do. I dunno.” 

The more Changbin thinks about it, the more it makes sense. Still... 

“My dad does all that stuff by himself.” He frowns. “So I guess he’s a dad and a mom?” 

“That sounds hard,” Wooyoung says. 

“Yeah.”

They’re silent for a moment. 

“Woo!” Out of nowhere, San jumps onto the bench from behind them and nearly falls. “Are we going home yet?” 

Wooyoung sits up again before answering with a glare. “Where were you guys?” 

“San wanted to use the sparkly markers,” Yeosang says. The rest of Wooyoung’s brothers come around to stand in front of them. “He said we would get lost if we went without him.” 

“Told you,” Changbin grins. Wooyoung sticks his tongue out at him, but doesn’t say anything.

Yunho points toward the end of the parking lot where a Jeep is pulling up along the curb. “They’re here!” 

Changbin watches as the other kids run up to the car, and Mr. Seonghwa gets out of the passenger side, laughing as he gets down on his knees to gather them all in for a hug. Mr. Hongjoong goes around the front of the car, and Jongho waddles toward him instead, so Mr. Hongjoong picks him up. 

Changbin likes Mr. Seonghwa and Mr. Hongjoong, and he likes their family. There’s nothing wrong with them just because they don’t have a mom. So there’s nothing wrong with his family, either, right?

“Binnie, come say hi!” Wooyoung calls, waving at him. 

Changbin is a little confused, but he goes over, and Mingi smiles at him when he stands next to the other. 

“Hi, Changbin,” Mr. Seonghwa says. “How are you?” 

Changbin thinks his smile is nice to look at. “I’m doing good,” he says, feeling shy. 

“Do you want us to wait with you for your dad?” 

Changbin starts to shake his head, but his dad steps in for him, carrying Jeongin and holding onto Jisung’s hand. 

“No need, Seonghwa,” Minho says, smiling. “Thank you for the offer though. Nice to see you both. And you kids too.” 

“Hi, Mr. Minho,” Wooyoung and Yunho say together, giggling and jinxing each other because there’s no roof over their heads.

“You too,” Mr. Hongjoong responds, ruffling Mingi’s hair as the child goes to hide behind his leg. “You still going mountain biking with me?” 

Minho laughs. “Let’s see if you can catch up. Text me later.” He smiles down at Changbin. “Ready to go?” 

Changbin nods and says goodbye to Wooyoung and his brothers before going to hold Jisung’s hand until they get to the car. On the ride home, he thinks about what Wooyoung had said. Wooyoung’s dads are great, but Changbin only has the one. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t love Minho! But he still wonders what it would be like if they had another parent. 

As Jisung and Jeongin run toward their room, Changbin’s about to follow them when Minho calls him back. 

“Binnie?” he asks. 

“Yes, papa?” 

Minho does that frowny thing he does when he’s worried. “How was school today?” 

“It was okay.” Changbin scuffs his foot against the floor. 

“Is that the truth, Binnie?” 

When Changbin looks up, Minho still looks worried. He doesn’t want Minho to worry. “Yes,” he says, nodding rapidly. 

But Minho is scary when he knows that Changbin is lying. His eyebrow goes higher on his forehead, and Changbin switches from nodding his head to shaking it. 

“No,” he says truthfully instead. 

“Thank you, Binnie,” Minho says, and takes Changbin’s hand, leading him to the couch. As they sit, he turns to Changbin and places his crocheted pig-bunny plushie named Lew in his arms. Changbin wishes Minho didn’t know so much sometimes. He picks up the plushie and starts playing with its ears.

“Do you want to talk about what’s wrong?” Minho asks him seriously. 

Changbin thinks about it. He had already tried lying, so that wasn’t going to work. So now he has to tell the truth, but it’s hard. Is this what being an adult is like? Changbin decides he might not want it as much as he thought. 

“Papa might not like it,” he mumbles.

Minho pats his knee gently. “Even if I don’t like it, that just means we’ll talk about it and figure out what to do so both of us are okay.” 

Well, that makes sense, Changbin supposes. “Well… Today was Mother’s Day,” he says quietly. Minho doesn’t say anything, so he keeps going. “And Teacher made me make a card…” 

Minho’s thumb rubs gently over Changbin’s knee. “Binnie,” he says, and why does he sound like he might cry? Changbin looks up, but Minho isn’t crying, though he looks a little sad. “Do you want a mother?” 

Changbin frowns and thinks back to what he’d talked about with Wooyoung. “No,” he says. “We’re okay with just you and us, right?”

Minho looks at him for a long moment. “I think we are, but it’s important what you think too. So I need to make sure you’re being honest. You’re sure you’re okay without another parent?” 

“Yep.” Changbin squeezes Lew a little. Some of the stuffing is visible through the holes. “Promise! It’s kinda sad sometimes, but Wooyoung doesn’t have a mom and he’s okay.” 

“Just because Wooyoung is okay doesn’t mean you have to be,” Minho says gently. 

Changbin pouts. “I know. But I still promise it’s okay. I said Wooyoung ‘cause he has two dads, so I was thinking about whether you were sad or lonely or wanted another dad to help you to do all your grownup stuff.” 

There’s another pause, where Minho stares at him. Had Changbin said something wrong? Should he take it back? 

But Minho just reaches out his arms and gathers Changbin in for a hug. Changbin lets Lew fall onto the couch so he can hug his dad back, though he’s still confused. 

“I’m going to be honest with you too, okay Binnie?” Minho rubs his back a little, which feels nice. Comforting. “It is a little hard, but it’s always worth it. I have you three, and you’re the most important people in my life, okay? Don’t forget that.” 

Changbin feels himself starting to cry, and he wants to wipe it away, but Minho always says it’s okay to cry if you’re feeling a lot. So he buries his face in Minho’s shoulder and cries a little. He’s not sad, but he doesn’t know what he’s feeling, either. 

For the rest of the day, he clings to Minho as much as he can. 

* * *

Seungmin knows he should probably be getting tired of Jisung and his brothers coming over to play, but he’s not, and it’s their sixth playdate. He’d even shared his favorite books with Jisung, so that makes them really good friends now. It’s friendship law to share your favorite toys and books, after all. 

“What do you kids want for lunch?” Chan had asked them. 

“Chicken nuggets and pasketti!” Felix and Jisung cheer at the same time. 

Chan looks to Minho in that way adults do when they’re laughing inside. “Again?” he asks. 

Hyunjin is nodding now too, and Seungmin also thinks that it would be delicious. “Please?” Seungmin asks, because being polite has always worked in the past. “Pretty please with a cherry on top?” 

Minho makes a funny expression where his lips almost disappear. “You need to eat some vegetables,” he says. 

But Seungmin puts his hands together like Felix had shown him that one time, and makes his eyes really really big, and sticks out his lower lip. “Please?” he tries again. 

This time, Jeongin and Felix join in, and then Hyunjin, Jisung, and even Changbin make puppy eyes too. Seungmin watches as Chan looks at Minho with that expression that means he can’t help but say yes, and Minho lifts both his eyebrows. 

“Fine,” he says, and the children all start cheering. “But only if there’s some vegetables in the spaghetti.” 

Seungmin doesn’t think that’s too bad, and maybe Jeongin will eat it if he sneaks him a cookie, so he jumps up and down, feeling happy. 

“Wait in the living room until we call you, okay?” Chan tells them, and the kids all run out of the kitchen and into the living room. 

“Let’s play pirates!” Changbin says. “Wooyoung gave me the idea! I get to be the big scary sea monster!” 

Jeongin clambers onto the couch, something he’s gotten very good at. “I get to be the pirate captain! Seungmo can be my first mate!” 

Seungmin doesn’t have a problem with that. “Okay,” he agrees. 

“Can I be a mermaid?” Felix asks. 

“Yeah,” Changbin says. “Hyunjin too, ‘cause he can probably swim fast. That means I have to eat you if you’re slow, though!” 

He lunges toward Hyunjin, who screams, but he’s laughing as he tries to get away, and starts running around the living room, Felix behind him. 

“Jeongin, we have to save them!” Seungmin says. “We have to jab the sea monster with our swords until he’s dead!” 

Jeongin had gotten down from the couch and found a piece of paper to fold into a triangle. He holds it on top of his head because it keeps slipping, but Seungmin thinks it’s a great pirate hat. “Let’s go, or we’ll be too late!” Jeongin cries, and runs after Changbin. 

In the end, the two of them manage to tackle Changbin with the help of Jisung the magical unicorn and make sure he can’t eat Felix and Hyunjin, but then they learn that he just wanted to make friends with the mermaids and didn’t know how because he thought they thought he was ugly. So Felix and Hyunjin tell him he isn’t ugly, and they all embark on a quest together to find the mean sea creatures who told him such things and teach them a lesson. 

As they finish up, Seungmin flops on the floor. “Man, I’m hungry.” 

“Me too,” Jisung says, and curls up next to him. “When’s lunch?” 

“We can go ask,” Felix suggests hopefully. “But I’m tired, too. I don’t wanna move.” 

Seungmin is going to be nice, just this once. “I’ll go ask,” he says, and stands up. 

When he makes it to the doorway to the kitchen, he means to speak up, he really does, but Chan has always taught him not to interrupt people when they’re speaking, and Chan and Minho are talking right now. Chan is standing at the stove, and Minho is standing next to him, but they seem awfully close together. Seungmin only stands that close to people when he needs to whisper a secret.

So he doesn’t say anything.

“So you just don’t add any at all?” Minho is saying. He sounds horrified. 

Chan nudges Minho’s foot with his own, but Minho doesn’t move. “Listen, I can’t tolerate it, so I just never thought to see if they could.” 

Minho turns his head to fully look at Chan. “I can’t believe you,” he says. “We’re gonna put some in right now. Unless you don’t have anything, in which case I might have to make an emergency grocery run.” 

“You’ll do no such thing.” Chan is laughing, and when Minho pushes against his shoulder, he pushes back, both of them giggling like the girls in Seungmin’s class when he passes by. “I am perfectly content living a spice-free life, thank you very much.” 

But then Minho stops struggling and leans in, smiling in a way that Seungmin isn’t sure is friendly. “How about some sugar instead, then?” 

Seungmin has never seen that shade of red on Chan’s face. Well, okay, maybe when the moms in the parent teacher group thingy say nice things about his suit or hair. Is Chan embarrassed, then? What’s so embarrassing about sugar? Then again, Seungmin wouldn’t want sugar in his spaghetti either. 

They haven’t seen Seungmin in the doorway, and when Chan makes some very weird and interesting noises as he shoves Minho away again, Seungmin thinks it might be better not to interrupt at all. 

He makes his way back to the other kids, who look up at him. They have the Trouble board on the ground that they didn’t finish earlier, but they’re looking at him instead. 

“Well, when’s lunch, then?” Hyunjin asks. 

“I don’t know,” Seungmin says truthfully. 

Jisung frowns. “You don’t know? I thought you were going to ask!” 

“I was,” Seungmin says, pouting. “But they were acting kinda weird while they were cooking.” 

“Weird how?” Jeongin asks, tilting his head. 

Seungmin tries to think about how to explain it. “Well, they were pushing each other but laughing at the same time. Then when Minho asked Dad if he should add sugar, Dad turned into a tomato.” 

“Weird,” Felix says. “You mean like Dopey the dwarf?” 

“Why did papa want to add sugar?” Jeongin asks. 

Seungmin spreads his hands wide. “That’s what I was thinking!” 

As they all talk about what it might mean, Changbin claps his hands together excitedly. “Wait!” he says. “I think I got it!” 

“What do you got?” Jisung asks curiously. 

Changbin makes an _ahem ahem_ sound while covering his mouth with his fist. “They need to go on a date.” 

All of them stare at him in confusion. 

“What’s a date?” Jeongin finally asks. 

Seungmin has to think about it. “It’s the wrinkly thing Daddy once bought to help his tummy.” 

Jeongin looks even more confused. “The thing that makes you poop? How do you fit both of them on top of it at the same time?” 

Hyunjin looks disgusted. “Ew, don’t say poop, Jeongin! It’s a bad word!” 

“But you said it!”

“I’m older so I can say it.”

“My best friend Wooyoung said a bad word once,” Changbin tells them seriously. “But it wasn’t poop. I think it rhymed with duck.”

Felix reaches out and tugs on Changbin’s sleeve. “Wait, you mean I’m not your bestest friend?” 

“I can have more than one best friend, Lix,” Changbin says quickly. 

As Felix smiles, Jeongin says, “Papa is my bestest friend.” Then he adds, “And Channie! I want Channie to be my papa too.”

“But then Papa and Channie have to get married first,” Jisung says. 

Changbin nods. “Yeah, and before the marriage part, they gotta go on a date!” 

“But you didn’t explain what a date is,” Seungmin points out. 

The oldest boy puts his hands on his hips. “It’s when two people who like each other very much hold hands and kiss and stuff. And usually there’s food.”

Hyunjin doesn’t look like he believes Changbin. “But how do we get them to do that, then?” 

“I know!” Felix gasps and claps his hands together. “We can make them hold hands at a tea party! I have a whole set of teacups and stuff. If we make the picnic for them ourselves, then they can’t say no, and then after the date they’ll get married!” 

Seungmin frowns. “But it’s raining outside,” he says. 

“Then we’ll do it inside.” Jisung points at the dining room. “There’s a lot of space over there, next to the eating table.” 

“Let’s go, then!” Jeongin cheers, and all of them get up, off to find different things to use on their tea party picnic. 

* * *

When Minho brings the pot of spaghetti over to the dining table, he stops short in the doorway. 

“What’s all this?” he asks. 

Hyunjin looks up from where he’s arranging some play teacups in a loose circle around a teapot, looking like a deer in the headlights. “Playing!” he says, very unconvincingly. 

Minho would call him on the obvious lie, but his brain is too muddled with gay fog to fully process anything right now, and at least the kids aren’t setting anything on fire. “Alright then,” he tells Hyunjin as he moves over to the table. “Carry on.” 

He sneaks a look over his shoulder as he moves back toward the kitchen to grab the chicken nuggets from Chan, and catches Hyunjin, Jeongin, and Felix giggling to each other about something. Interesting.

“They’re planning something,” he tells Chan as he’s handed the serving platter of chicken nuggets. 

“Aren’t they usually?” Chan grins as he grabs a stack of plates and some utensils, and oh, Minho likes it when he’s a little on the snarky side. 

The two of them call the boys to help set the table, and in no time, everyone is seated around it. Jeongin ends up sitting next to Chan, and when Chan asks if he would like to be fed, shakes his head.

“I’m a big boy,” he insists earnestly. “I can do it.” 

But it only takes a few tries of dropping the fork or the noodles (or both) for him to finally hold his fork out to Chan and give him sad pouting eyes. 

“Alright, alright,” Chan laughs, and takes the fork from him. “Come here.” 

It does funny things to Minho’s heart to watch Chan feeding his youngest son, and maybe he nearly loses his grip on his own fork a couple times. Thankfully, though, none of the kids notice. 

He makes sure all the kids wash their hands and faces before enlisting Jisung and Changbin to help Chan with the dishes. There’s only enough space for the three of them around the sink, so Minho goes to check on the other kids, who immediately pounce on him when he enters the living room. 

“Minho!” Felix says, using both his hands to pull on Minho’s wrist. “Where are you going? You’re going the wrong way!” 

“The wrong way?” Minho asks in confusion. “Where am I supposed to be going?” 

“The dining room!” Hyunjin shouts, grabbing onto Minho’s other wrist. Together, the boys are surprisingly strong, and Minho allows himself to be dragged back into the dining room while Jeongin chants, “Dining room, dining room, dining room!”

Seungmin rushes over to lug one of the dining table chairs back as Felix and Hyunjin pull Minho’s arms downward to make him sit. “You can’t see it yet,” Seungmin tells him earnestly, standing in front of the lumpy blanket on the floor. “Dad has to be here.” 

Amused, Minho sits and gives them a look of confusion. “And why’s that?” 

“Because you’re gonna have a da—”

“Shhh!” Hyunjin hisses at Jeongin. “It’s a surprise, remember!” 

Eyes wide, Jeongin covers his mouth with both hands and nods. 

They hold him hostage in the dining room chair until Chan comes back out, dragged by Changbin and Jisung. He looks just as confused as Minho. 

“Now that we have both of them, show them, Seungmin!” Changbin shouts gleefully. 

Seungmin dutifully goes over to the blanket that’s covering what Minho had seen earlier and yanks it off, revealing a vast array of teacups and teapot, fake food and plates, with enough room on one side to sit down. 

“You made this?” Minho asks, hopelessly endeared. 

“For your date!” Changbin clarifies proudly. 

Chan blinks and meets Minho’s gaze, color rising in his cheeks. “Our what?” 

“Your date,” Felix tells him patiently. He tugs on Minho, who can do nothing but follow him until he and Chan are made to sit in the empty space on the blankets. “Hurry up or your food will get cold!” 

Minho looks to Chan again, something unnameable stirring in his chest. He’s been slightly scared, to be honest. It’s obvious to the two of them that there’s a sort of tension between them, something electric and thrumming just beneath their skin. But there’d been a hesitance too, something holding the both of them back from tipping over. Minho isn’t sure whether this is the point that they will yet, but at the very least, they don’t have to worry about what the boys will think. 

Chan looks at him, then reaches over for the teapot, a growing smile on his face. It’s almost shy, and Minho watches it as Chan pretends to pour tea into one of the little teacups, then picks up the teacup and saucer, handing it carefully to Minho.

“Your tea, good sir,” he says, pressing his lips together to keep from laughing. 

Minho must hesitate for a moment too long, because he can hear Jisung whisper _why isn’t he taking it?_ Shaking his head, he reaches out and lets his fingers linger against Chan’s as he takes the teacup and saucer, smiling in return. Chan’s smile had faltered a little, but it settles into something brighter before he turns away to pour himself a cup.

Minho glances at the children, who are clustered around and watching them, and raises an eyebrow. “Are you going to join the tea party?”

“That’s not how the date works!” Hyunjin tells him firmly. “Binnie said you have to spend time with each other! And hold hands!”

“Did he now?” Minho chuckles. “Don’t tell me you’ve been on a date, Binnie.”

Changbin’s eyes widen and he shakes his head. “No! I don’t even wanna go on a date. I just saw it on Girl Meets World because I was waiting for Sofia the First to come on.”

Minho almost wants to monitor his TV choices more strictly in the future, but well, if that’s what it had taken to realize their kids are supportive of them and their romantic feelings, he can let it go for now.

“Why did you set up a date for us, though?” Chan asks. He sounds curious rather than disapproving, so Minho takes it as a good sign. He’s curious as well, since he doesn’t recall being overtly flirty or anything in front of their boys.

“Because you can’t get married before you go on dates,” Felix says matter-of-factly.

Minho nearly chokes on his laughter, but Chan looks pale. “We’re… We’re not getting married, Felix.” Chan sets his teacup down carefully.

“You’re not?” Jeongin asks. “Does that mean you won’t be our other dad?”

Minho’s about to come to Chan’s rescue when Seungmin beats him to it. “Dates are more boring than I thought. Come on, let’s go finish Trouble.”

The other kids groan, but when he whispers something to Felix and Felix grabs onto Hyunjin and Changbin’s hands excitedly, they dutifully troop into the living room after him, leaving Chan and Minho alone.

“You good?” Minho asks, trying to gauge his expression.

Chan had been staring after the kids, but he turns to Minho with a reassuring smile. “Yeah, don’t worry.” He pauses, and Minho waits for him to swallow and continue. 

“Look, I know they get attached easily, but I don’t—“

“I know,” Minho tells him sincerely. “I don’t expect anything either.” It would be so easy to clearly tell him how he feels, but something holds Minho back. All he can offer is reaching over to take Chan’s hand, squeezing it and hoping that it’s comforting. He wonders a little about how stricken Chan’s expression had been, but he doesn’t think it’s the right time to ask. It’s enough to know that Minho hadn’t been imagining the reciprocation on some level, and that they don’t have to tiptoe around each other anymore with the kids. “I can wait. We can wait.”

Chan smiles at him gratefully as he turns his hand over so he can return the squeeze. “Thank you.”

From the doorway to the living room, they can hear the sounds of the kids shoving each other and whispering too loud. Minho definitely hears a _move over, Hyunjin, I can’t see!_ and a _they finally held hands, it worked Binnie!_

“Alright, you rascals,” he calls, reluctantly letting go of Chan’s hand. “Date’s over, come help clean up.”

Felix and Jisung trip over each other and into the room, and look up at them sheepishly from the floor. “Oops, how did that happen?” Felix asks.

Laughing, Chan reaches for the nearest plates. “One of these objects is a magical one,” he tells them. “Whoever finds it and checks it with me before putting it in Felix’s toy bin gets piggyback rides from me _and_ Minho.”

That gets all of the little ones back in the room, and there’s comfortable chaos as they scramble to clean up and earn the reward. Chan only gives it to the last object shown to him, a plastic spoon held up excitedly by a hopeful Jisung with big sparkly eyes.

“This is the one!” Chan tells him, and Jisung pumps his fists in the air and does a little victory dance.

“Channie first!” he cries happily, and flings himself at Chan. Obligingly, Chan picks him up and lets Jisung clamber around to his back, and they take off, pretending to be a dragon and its rider. Minho tries not to think about how easily Chan picks them all up, and how easily he and his kids have latched onto Chan as well.

* * *

As Minho had predicted, their stay extends past dinner, and then past the boys’ bedtime. Thankfully, he’s started bringing pajamas and other necessities for his kids whenever they come over, just in case. Minho and Chan have an especially chaotic time wrangling the boys into bed this time, but eventually they curl up together under various blankets.

Minho is leaning down to tuck in the blankets around Felix when Felix’s tiny arms wind around his neck in a sleepy hug and don’t let go.

“Wanna hug,” he mumbles into Minho’s shoulder, and Minho once again feels an indescribable fondness for a little boy that isn’t even his. His throat closes up a little as he leans down further to gather Felix in his arms, and rubs his back a little. 

“Goodnight, Felix,” he whispers, and lays him back down. Felix is too sleepy to give him a coherent reply. 

Minho finishes tucking him in, and checks on Jisung and Jeongin as well, who are already asleep. Turning, he pads quietly out of the room after Chan, following him into the room with the other three boys. Hyunjin and Changbin are just as clingy, and Minho makes sure to ruffle Seungmin’s hair a little as well just in case. 

As he and Chan close the door behind them on their way out, Chan smiles at him. “Do you need to borrow anything or are you good?”

Minho almost says _a kiss_ but thinks better of it. “I brought some sleepwear, don’t worry.”

“Alright,” Chan says. “Feel free to go to bed anytime.” 

Minho knows this is the part where Chan turns and goes back to work, but he doesn’t want him to go just yet, and he’s not feeling particularly sleepy. So when Chan turns to head back into the living room, he says, “Wait.” 

Chan pauses and turns, looking at him inquisitively. “Yes?” 

To be honest, Minho doesn’t know where the sudden surge of what could be construed as courage comes from. Perhaps it’s because of the boys and their eagerness about the two of them going on a date, and the relief that comes with it. But he steps forward instead of turning toward the bathroom, moving past Chan and toward the living room. 

“Am I allowed to see what you’re working on?” he asks. 

Chan’s footsteps follow behind him, which must be a good sign. “Probably not,” he says regretfully. “You’re not going to sleep?” 

His tone sounds careful, almost like he wants Minho to stay up, but of course he’s the perfectly polite host and won’t actually ask it out loud. Minho wishes he would be more disrespectful, sometimes, especially since it’s hard for him to articulate what he wants, too. Maybe they’ll both grow in that aspect together as they get more comfortable. 

“You don’t want my company?” he asks, injecting a small amount of teasing mirth into it as he throws a smirk over his shoulder. 

Predictably, Chan splutters and the tips of his ears go red. “That’s—That’s not what I meant—”

Minho laughs and plants himself on the couch in front of Chan’s laptop where it sits on the coffee table, positioned so that Chan has to lean over him to grab it, and he can look over at Chan’s side profile and the sliver of skin as his shirt rides up. Respectfully, of course. Okay, maybe a little disrespectfully.

Chan settles next to him, and Minho is pleased to note that by sitting cross-legged, his knee digs a little into Chan’s thigh but Chan doesn’t pull away. Technically, he could just get up quickly to grab his own laptop and do some work so he doesn’t disturb Chan, but he doesn’t really want to move. So he settles back into the couch, lazily watching and listening to Chan type. 

He’s rather content, actually. The silence isn’t awkward, and he could leave without feeling awkward, but Chan’s fingers slow, and he takes his headphones off so that they settle around his neck. 

“I can’t just leave you unentertained,” he admits. “Feels strange.” 

Minho waves a hand. “If you have deadlines or something, go ahead. I really don’t mind.” A sly grin spreads across his face. “Why, did you have some specific kind of entertainment in mind?” 

Chan makes a strangled sort of noise which makes Minho laugh. “Nothing like that!” he admonishes, and Minho can just about see him fanning himself like some Victorian damsel who’s seen too much ankle.

“Then what?” Minho asks innocently. “You gonna make me play Twenty Questions?” 

Chan actually looks like he’s considering the idea. “I mean… Not a half-bad idea. Or like, song association? We can’t be super loud, though.” 

“Song association?” Minho trips over the word a little. “What’s that?” 

There’s a silence as Chan stares at him. “You’re joking.” 

“I am not,” Minho says, flicking his forehead.

“Ow!” Chan rubs at the spot, glaring a little, but it loses its effect when he’s still in shock and, unfortunately, cute. “Okay, well, now we’re gonna have to play it.” 

Raising an eyebrow, Minho turns a little so that he’s facing Chan properly. “Explain the rules, then.” 

Chan fishes out his phone and navigates to the clock app as he speaks, finding the tab for the timer. “Basically, you’re given a word, and then you have fifteen seconds to think of and sing or rap a song lyric with that word.” 

“I don’t sing,” Minho says immediately. 

“Oh, hush,” Chan says. “It’s just me. You should hear Hyunjin sing in the bath.” 

Minho has to laugh at that one. “What does he sing?” 

Taking a deep breath, Chan answers, “Into The Unknown, mostly.” 

“Oh no.” 

“Oh yeah.” 

“Unfortunately, it’s grown on me,” Minho sighs. “Don’t tell me you’re gonna give me ‘unknown’ as a word, though.” 

Chan blinks, much too innocently. “I would never.” 

Minho gives him a withering glare. 

“Okay, okay, I really won’t,” Chan promises, laughing. “Do you wanna go first?” 

“I’ll give you a word.” Minho thinks for a second, then grins. “Ball.” 

Chan hits the start button on the timer, but it only takes a single second for him to pale. “Wait,” he hisses. “I absolutely can’t sing the thing I was thinking of.” 

“You have ten seconds now, Channie.” 

Chan stares at him for another two seconds. Minho stares back. 

Giving up, Chan sings softly, “ _To the window, to the wall, to the sweat drop down my balls…_ ”

Minho doubles over as Chan stops the timer, trying and failing to keep in wheezing laughter. 

“Shut up!” Chan complains, and Minho only looks up to confirm that his ears are, indeed, a brilliant shade of red. “It was the only thing I could think of!” 

“Oh really?” Minho challenges. “Not ‘At The Ball’ from Barbie, not ‘Take Me Out To The Ball Game,’ but ‘ _Get Low._ ’”

“It’s your turn,” Chan interrupts firmly. “You don’t get to keep slandering me like this. Let’s see…” He places his laptop on the table and turns so that one leg is on the couch and the other on the floor, scrutinizing Minho’s gleeful face. “Juice.”

He starts the timer, but Minho doesn’t even hesitate. 

“ _Ain’t my fault that I’m out here gettin’ loose / Gotta blame it on the Goose / Gotta blame it on my juice, baby_.” As he says the last word, he tries to send an over-exaggerated wink in Chan’s direction. The problem is that he can’t really wink, so it ends up as more of a blink instead. Chan is laughing nonetheless, trying to keep it down by biting down on his lower lip and pressing his fist against his mouth. His eyes are sparkling. Minho’s own laughter dies down as he tries to cover up his staring by pressing onward. 

“Your word is ‘somebody.’”

Choking a little, Chan starts, “ _Some…_ He only grins wider when Minho realizes what he’s about to sing. 

“Don’t you dare,” Minho says. 

_“...body once told me the world was gonna roll me,”_ Chan continues. _“I ain’t the sharpest tool in the shed…”_

“Never mind,” Minho says. “I regret this, just pick a word.” 

Chan manages to suppress his giggles, but his eyes are still sparkling as he searches for another word. Minho just might linger on the furrow of his brow and his lips pursing a little, and it’s so nice to let himself just look for a moment. Either Chan doesn’t notice or just lets him look, and Minho doesn’t have to worry about prying eyes or anything outside this little bubble.

They go for a few more rounds until Minho devilishly chooses the word Versace for Chan and Chan barely manages to choke out some of the lyrics to “Versace On The Floor,” finally giving up and leaning forward until he can hide his face against Minho’s thigh. Minho settles his hand on Chan’s head without thinking about it, still laughing. 

“Done for the night, then?” he asks. 

Chan groans a little, but doesn’t move. “Technically, I still have work to do,” he says. 

“You should do it in bed,” Minho says, clicking his tongue disapprovingly. “Maybe you’ll actually sleep that way.” 

“Doubtful,” Chan sighs, but he finally sits up.

Minho fixes him with the expression he reserves for when Jeongin refuses to go down for a nap. “Chan,” he says sternly. “Christopher. Chanathan.” 

Chan’s lip pushes outward in a pout. Definitely not distracting. “Don’t Chanathan me.” 

“I will continue to Chanathan you until you go to bed, Chanathan,” Minho grins. 

“Stooop.” 

“Go to bed, then.” 

“No.” 

“Your choice, Chanathan.” 

Chan looks like he’s caught between a laugh and a sigh. “Besides, you still take my bed when you’re over, so technically aren’t I in bed if I stay here on the couch and work?” 

And since the theme of the night is being a little braver and pushing the boundaries a little, Minho blurts, “We could share.” 

“Share?” Chan blinks, as if he’s never heard of the word in his life. 

“Yes,” Minho says patiently. “You know, when parts of something are divided between—”

Chan waves his hand. “I know, I just… Are you sure you’re comfortable with that?” 

Minho frowns. “Why wouldn’t I be?” Even if he wasn’t romantically interested in Chan, he would feel safe with Chan nearby, and want Chan to actually sleep in a comfortable place. 

“Ah.” Chan touches his earlobe, something cute that Minho’s noticed he does when he’s nervous. “Well, if you’re okay with that…” 

“I am,” Minho says firmly, brooking no further argument. 

There’s that tension again, not necessarily a bad thing but something heavy between them, something that Minho hopes is still shifting in the right direction. He refuses to make this awkward, though, so he turns away from Chan to stretch his legs and stand. 

“You better be in there when I get back from the bathroom.” 

He takes his time changing and brushing his teeth, then enters Chan’s bedroom with ample warning just in case Chan is changing as well. He half-expects it to be empty, which means he’ll have to go out to the living room and drag Chan over. 

But Chan is sitting with his legs partly under the covers in a loose shirt and shorts, headphones on again. He looks up briefly to smile at Minho before going back to his work, so Minho takes the opportunity to slide in on the other side, plugging his charger in and setting his phone on the little nightstand. Chan had been considerate enough to leave the side of the bed next to the nightstand free, and if Minho cranes his neck a little, he can see the charger for Chan’s laptop disappearing over the side of the bed. The lights are low, and because he worries for Chan’s eyes, he doesn’t ask for them to be turned off, just turning on his side so he can face the other. 

Chan is still close like this, and Minho allows himself to think about what would happen if he just reached over a little, maybe grabbed onto the hem of Chan’s shirt. He wonders if Chan would let him lay his head in the other’s lap, or if he can’t deal with distractions while working. He wonders if Chan would ever let Minho distract him on purpose. 

He thinks he hears a soft goodnight from Chan as he drifts off, but he can’t be sure. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for sticking with us. Stay safe, support social justice, and take care of yourselves. Please comment and see you in the next installment.~


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